At the Midnight Hour
by marcasite
Summary: Stay with me. I won’t ask you to share all your secrets with me tonight...


_Joyce, this was all your idea tonight, all your talk about the night and deeper meanings. Leslie, even when you're tired, you still know how to help a girl out. Thanks._

She loves the night, revels in the sleekness and security it provides, and chooses to occupy most of her waking hours basking in it. The night with all its secrets carefully hidden away comforts her and lends her protection. It never judges her and is always steadfast. Nothing that happens at night ever surprises her, so when he shows up at her door one summer night, she doesn't hesitate and reaches out for her moment.

She remembers the first night he came to her, holding a bottle of wine and a heart full of unshared memories. The years that had stood between them, full of unspoken distance and painful moments, melted away. He stood there in the doorway, night cascading around him, and a sad smile on his face.

"Do you believe it's darker at midnight?" she had murmured, watching him with cautious eyes. She stepped away from the door to allow him access; moving into the kitchen she pulled down two wine glasses and placed them on the coffee table. He still hadn't spoken a word, having barely moved away from the door. She recalls staring at him; not really expecting an answer. "I can pour, but we have to open it first, Griss." He had extended his arm and she reached over to take the bottle from him. That night, few words had been exchanged but the silence spoke volumes. She had known that his presence in her home that night would change things between them and it had. He would show up at her door on random days, random times; dusk, dawn and sometimes just this side of midnight. Some days he would stay until dusk, creeping away before she awoke. Most nights he stood near her, comforted by her presence but carried his wall of protection with him.

Tonight was one of those rare nights she awoke and wondered why he was still there. He was sleeping, one arm tossed over his face, breathing deeply. She slipped out of the bed and trailed down the hall into the living room, staring out the window. She wonders when she started to turn into this woman; living for this moment, waiting for the next. Could she even change this, does she want to?

"Sara?"

She sighed but didn't dare turn around; she knew he would approach her and in his own clumsy way try to make reparations. "Is this it, then?" the concern rang clear in his voice.

Sara knew without a doubt that she needed more than this but also knew that she could not live without him. They had come this far and maybe, maybe if she gave him more time, more space…In a way this was her mistake, she really should have laid out her expectations up front but for now was willing to take him any way possible.

"I'm trying, Sara. I, I need this, I need you." He raked his hand over his face, trying to clear the cobwebs that had gathered. "I know you need more from me and…" He trailed off.

She finally turned and looked at him with a smile, "I know, I know." The moonlight cast a soft light around them and she reached up and touched his face with her hand, a movement reminiscent of a past time, past moment shared.

"God Sara, you are so beautiful." He reached up and grasped her hand, pressing a kiss into her palm. "I don't realize how lucky I am sometimes, Sara. You keep giving me these chances and I keep walking away from them. I don't want to walk away anymore."

She knew how much it took for him to say that, how much his gesture spoke volumes about his love for her. She realized that she didn't just have to take what little he thought he could offer her. She could just be there for him until he was ready. "Stay with me. I won't ask you to share all your secrets with me tonight, but one night I will if you stay."

He sighed raggedly, as if he had been holding his breath. He reached both hands to her face and pulled her close to him. She leaned her full weight into his frame and reached up into his kiss. His kiss was a claim, the plea held in it's under currents and she fell all over again. "Sara, I promise…I promise…"

She only hoped promises made in the depths of night could be lived up to in the light of day.


End file.
